The Hairy Beast: “On” Wisconsin

The white house is backing off from events in Madison. From the Washington Examiner:

White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer is claiming that “This is a Wisconsin story, not a Washington one,” contradicting the Washington Post’s reporting that the president and his political apparatus has gotten deeply involved in the effort. But Pfeiffer fails to acknowledge that unions, particularly in the public sector, and President Obama’s apparatus are the same thing, having worked to get out the vote for Democrats for years.

The Democrats’ political tin ear, evident for the past two years, is on full display. Maybe they thought the sight of raging public sector employees shirking work to screech for more of Wisconsin voter’s pay would warm Wisconsonian hearts, but it hasn’t. Recent polls show about half the voters stand with Gov. Wilder, and 35% with the Unionistas. That’s a recipe for disaster.  When private employees bargain for higher wages and benefits, they can at least argue they’re after a larger share of the profits their labors create. Public employees can’t say that. When they want more money it doesn’t come off the spread sheet at some billion dollar corporation, it comes directly out of the pockets of fellow workers, most of whom do not share the same level of income the public employees get! And unlike the demonstrators and the Wisconsin Democratic legislators now in hiding at Scottish Hooters in Illinois,  you can be certain that the taxpayers of this state get up every day and go to work.  They have taxes to pay.

Last November the voters turned out the Dems  en masse. Now the Republicans are in power and they’re doing just what they promised to do.  The mood of the nation is on the GOP side of this issue and one has to wonder what advantage the Dems thought they’d get for running counter to the will of the people once again. On the other hand, they’re Dems, so maybe there wasn’t much thought involved.